Audio player applications exist that allow users to manage and playback music on their computer. For instance, these applications typically allow a user to play compact discs, listen to audio tracks encoded in the Motion Picture Experts Group audio layer 3 format (“MP3”), listen to streaming audio available over the Internet, and to manage their collection of digital music. However, these types of programs do not allow a user to directly share their music collection with other users. Computer programs such as Napster™ and Gnutella™ have been developed that do allow users to share their music collections with other users. However, these programs do not allow sharing in real, or near real-time. Instead, these programs require users to download complete songs prior to listening to them. Depending upon the size of the file and the speed of each user's Internet connection, this process could take several minutes or longer before the user downloading the audio track is able to listen to music. Moreover, these programs do not provide any facility for two users to listen to a song at the same time. Sharing of music is a very common social activity. However, the currently available music playback applications provide no functionality for two or more remote Internet users to listen to a song at the same time.
Instant messaging applications also exist that allow two or more remote users to converse in real-time over a computing network, such as the Internet. Typically, an instant messaging server computer is utilized to facilitate instant messaging sessions. Instant messaging server computers will typically maintain a “buddy list” for each subscriber that identifies a number of users that a subscriber typically converses with. When a user identified in the buddy list signs onto the instant messaging server computer, the subscriber is notified that the user has signed on. The subscriber can then utilize an instant messaging client application to select the user from the buddy list and request an instant messaging session with the user. If the remote user accepts, a near real-time instant messaging session is initiated between the two users. Other users may also participate in the instant messaging session.
Through the use of such instant messaging applications, users may also transmit files to other users. For instance, one user may send another user an audio track. Again, however, the transfer of the audio track does not take place fast enough to listen to the music in real time. In fact, depending upon the bandwidth of each user's connection, such a transfer may take a long period of time to complete. Therefore, while instant messaging applications allow users to converse in near real-time, these types of applications also do not permit users to listen to music together in real-time.
Streaming audio server applications also exist that provide Internet-based streaming audio “radio stations.” These applications typically provide a World Wide Web (“Web” or “WWW”) front-end that a user may utilize to select and listen to the streaming audio radio station. Typically, a selection is made of the streaming audio radio station within the Web browser. In response to this selection, a streaming audio playback application is launched that connects to a streaming audio sever application, receives a stream of audio data, and plays the audio data. In this manner, streaming audio applications such as these provide the ability for users to listen to streaming audio in real-time. However, these applications allow no interactivity with other users while listening to the streaming audio radio station. Moreover, streaming audio server applications are typically difficult to setup and operate, and, therefore, are not utilized by individual users to share their music libraries.
Accordingly, in light of the above, there exists a need for a method and system for integrating instant messaging with streaming audio and audio playback that allows two or more users to listen to an audio track at the same time. Moreover, there exists a need for a method and system for integrating audio and instant messaging that allows users to easily share their music collections with other users while also interacting with those other users in real- or near real-time.